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by Ilovetoread09
Summary: After a chance meeting one night, the lives of Kate Beckett and Richard Castle become forever entwined. AU.
1. Chapter 1

AN: So, here is a new story. It's actually a revision of something I wrote a few months ago, but deleted it. Anyway, hope this version is better. Thanks to Angie for being my beta and putting up with me! As always, constructive criticism is welcome.

Disclaimer: I don't own Castle.

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Kate Beckett sighed as she tapped her pen against the desk. It was a Friday afternoon and the brunette had been staring at the half empty piece of paper for almost thirty minutes now.

"Ugh," she groaned. "I'm never going to finish this article by tomorrow."

Kate had been working on an article for the New York Times on an up-and-coming politician. It was only about a page and a half, but Kate did not mind. She liked getting into the world of politics. She preferred it to the fluff her editor forced her to write sometimes. However, the brunette was having a problem coming up with what else to say. As Kate tried to think, there was knock on her door. Giving the person permission to come in, her co-worker, Leon Andrews entered.

"Boss wants to see you in his office," he said.

"What about?"

The man shrugged, his broad shoulders lifting. "He didn't say, but he wants to see you ASAP."

Kate got up from her desk and went to the office door marked Roy Montgomery, Editor in Chief.

"You wanted to see me, Sir?" she asked after knocking.

"Yes, Beckett, have a seat," her boss said, giving her a smile. After obliging, Roy began. "As you know, Christmas is almost here." Kate almost snorted. How could anyone not know? The decorations had gone up the instant Thanksgiving was over. "Anyway, the paper needs an article appropriate for Christmastime. You know, something that tugs either warms the heart or tugs at its strings."

"What does this have to do with me?" Kate asked, confused.

Montgomery sat back in his chair. "I want you to do the article. I think you would be perfect for it."

"But what about the Lyons article? I'm almost done with the draft."

"Andrews can finish that up. The guy needs something to do. So," Montgomery said, his brown eyes shining. "Are you going to do it?"

Knowing that she did not really have a choice, the brunette nodded.

"Excellent! Just the answer I was looking for, Beckett!" her boss exclaimed. "I want your ideas on my desk by Monday."

Kate nodded before leaving the office. She frowned, returned to her office and immediately crumpled up the draft of her old article and threw it in the trash. Taking out a fresh sheet of paper, she began to write down ideas. However, the jolly, Christmas music was distracting her. She sighed, before shutting her door.

The end of the day dragged on for the journalist as she tried to conjure up ideas. She was trying to come up with something that had not been done before. Unfortunately, she came up short. She considered interviewing one of the people at the soup kitchen she volunteered at every other weekend.

Checking her watch and realizing how late it was, Kate packed up her stuff and exited the office. When she reached the elevator, she saw that her co-worker, Javier Esposito was inside.

"Hey Esposito," she said.

"Hey Beckett, how's it going?" he asked, flashing her a grin

"The boss gave me an article for Christmas," she grumbled.

Esposito chuckled. "So, you're the one who got stuck with that article this year; the one article nobody wants to be stuck with."

Kate rolled her eyes. "You never would be." Javier reported on crimes, both big and small. He would never get stuck with a fluff piece.

He smirked. "Nope and good luck with that," he said as they exited the elevator. Kate rolled her eyes again and gave him a little wave as she turned to the direction of her apartment. On her way home, she neared an alleyway. As she passed, the brunette heard rustling from near the entrance of the alley. Just to be safe, Kate began to walk faster. However, just as she thought she was safe, a masked man appeared out of the alley and he was holding a knife, blocking her path.

"Give me your purse," he snarled, pointing the knife and walking towards her.

"I don't have anything of value, just personal stuff," she lied to the masked man, trying to keep calm.

"Don't lie to me, Bitch." The man closed in on her, pointing the knife at her throat.

"Okay, Okay," she said, her heart beating rapidly. She reached for her bag, hoping to grab the pepper spray that was in it. She just about got the flap open when another voice called out,

"Hey you, scumbag, get away from her." The voice belonged to a male. Kate wanted to see who it was, but was too afraid to even turn her head.

"Move along, Buddy," her attacker said. "Nothing to see here." he briefly turned his head to glare at the intruder. Kate took the opportunity to kick her attacker in the groin and he bent over, clutching his crotch.

"You Bitch," he seethed, getting ready to attack her. Kate ducked and covered her face in anticipation of a blow that never came. Her attacker had been stopped by a fist connecting with his face. The punch knocked him out cold. Kate looked at her fallen attacker and then back at the other man.

"Um, tha-thanks," she said, a little shaken up. She examined the man carefully. He looked about six feet, had blue eyes and brown hair. She noticed that the clothing he was wearing had several unidentifiable stains on them. His pants were kept up with a white string and his shoes had holes in them, making his toes stick out. Light scruff covered his face, emphasizing the dirt around it.

_He's not too bad looking_, Kate thought to herself. However she quickly pushed the notion of her head.

"You're welcome," he said, handing her the bag that she had not realized she had dropped. She took it cautiously eyeing the man. "What are you doing out here so late?"

"Walking home from work," she answered slowly. "Anyway, thanks again." She began to walk away, trying to regain her composure. As she did, the wind blew with a slight chill signaling that winter was arriving soon. She clutched her jacket closer to herself in an attempt to keep warm. As she did so, an image of her savior flashed through her mind and she frowned. She suddenly felt guilty that he had helped her and all she did was say thank you and then walk away, especially when he could have tried to take her money or ask for something in return for his heroism. Sighing she turned around, and walked towards the man who had not walked far from the entrance to the alley.

"Hey," she called out loudly, but gently. The man turned around, a confused expression on his face. Kate reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet, taking out a wad of cash. "Take this."

The man shook his head. "No thank you." He smiled at her.

"Please take it," she said, holding out her hand. "Consider it a proper thank you. Please, you can use it to buy gloves or shoes or something."

The man sighed, taking the money. "I normally don't take charity, but since you're so insistent and I don't want to be rude." He gave her a playful grin.

Kate nodded and smiled sheepishly. "Well, thank you again…" she trailed off, not knowing the man's name.

"Rick," he said. "Although, it doesn't really matter, does it? You'll probably never see me again."

Kate shrugged. "Who knows? I pretty much owe you my life. Well, goodbye." She turned and walked away, smiling. It felt good to help someone else. She smiled to herself, before continuing to the warmth of her apartment.

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AN: So there's the first chapter. I actually have two others written. Anyway, updates for this will be slow until I finish Eye of the Beholder. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: So, here is the next chapter! Don't expect any fast updates after this though. Thank you to those who have followed, favorited, and reviewed this story. The response has been amazing so far. Also, thank you to Angie for being my beta. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.

Disclaimer: I don't own Castle.

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Kate groaned as the loud beeping of her alarm clock woke her up the next morning. She always woke up early on the Saturdays when she volunteered at the soup kitchen. Silencing the offending object, she got up and got dressed. After fixing herself a quick breakfast of cereal and coffee, the brunette left her apartment and headed toward the kitchen. Passing the alleyway from the night before, Kate could feel herself growing nervous, but quickly shook it off. She was safe, thanks to that man, Rick and that was all that mattered. The brunette briefly wondered what had happened to her savior and whether he had gone and spent the money on appropriate items. Kate had always hated thinking poorly of a person, but she knew it was possible that the money had gone towards less than pure activities.

The moment Kate entered the building marked Saint Xavier's Soup Kitchen, she could smell the scent of the food being cooked for the day looming in the hallway. The volunteers were told to arrive an hour before service started so they could prepare themselves. When Kate entered the kitchen, she spotted her best friend chatting with one of the other volunteers.

"Hey Lanie, Sandra," she greeted, putting on her apron.

"Morning," the two women greeted cheerfully in unison.

As Kate put her hair into a bun, she spotted a brightly colored flyer on the counter. She scanned it for a moment and frowned.

"The kitchen wants to have one of those Santas come?"

Sandra nodded, tugging at her red hair. "Yeah, they're trying to get people into the Christmas spirit."

Kate sighed. "I'm for all for spreading Christmas cheer, but isn't a bad idea to give kids false hope?"

Lanie shrugged. "Maybe. To be honest though, some of the kids really need it." The woman frowned as she spoke. Lanie was a nurse who worked part time at the kitchen tending to the homeless and worked nights at the local hospital.

"I guess," Kate muttered, still not comfortable with the idea. She liked kids and did not want to see them disappointed on Christmas morning. The few kids she ever saw coming to the kitchen were there either because they were homeless or they needed to get away from home for the night. They certainly did not need another disappointment in their life.

"They're still looking for a Santa apparently," Sandra spoke up. "I wonder what poor guy will be dragged into that. But at least they're not looking for a Mrs. Clause or an elf too."

"Don't speak too soon," Kate said dryly, smirking. She had to hold back a chuckle as the image of her two friends dressed in an elf or Mrs. Clause costume entered her mind.

"Well, I better start setting up," Lanie said, beginning to head out of the kitchen. "Talk to you guys later."

As Sandra and Kate finished preparing themselves, Sandra asked Kate how her week had been.

"It was pretty quiet," Kate said, uncovering a serving tray. "My boss gave me an article to write for Christmas. I need to figure out what to write about. Maybe I could interview one of the people here."

"Maybe," Sandra hummed. "Just be careful. Not a lot of the people like talking about their personal lives. They come here to get away from it."

Kate nodded. "I know." She did not want to make anyone feel uncomfortable; they already had enough problems as it was. "So, what about you?"

"It was pretty quiet too,' Sandra answered. "Henry's out of town on a business trip, so I've had the apartment to myself." Henry was Sandra's husband. "Besides the damn cat of course." Kate chuckled. Sandra was not exactly a fan of the cat her husband had brought home one night, but the woman could never say no to her husband. "What? I swear it hates me."

"Well, maybe if you made more of an effort to interact with it, it might grow to like you. That, or feed it."

Sandra rolled her eyes and let out a snort. "Right."

Kate shook her head at her friend's stubbornness before turning to the counter. A line had already begun to form and the place was starting to fill with people. As the brunette served, she recognized a few familiar faces of some regulars. She would smile at them and ask how they were doing as she placed a spoonful of oatmeal in their bowls. They would return the favor before walking off to a table. Kate knew some of the people who came to the shelter very well and she often offered to help them. They always turned her down though. The next person in line however, Kate did not recognize at all.

"Hello," she said kindly to the little girl standing in front of her.

"Hi," the girl whispered and Kate's heart almost broke. The girl tentatively pushed her tray towards Kate, her brown eyes filled with sadness.

"It's okay, Sweetheart," the woman, who Kate assumed was the girl's mother, said, "She just wants to give you food." The little girl nodded as Kate filled the bowl on her tray. As she was doing so, Kate took the opportunity to examine the woman more closely. The brunette noticed faint bruising on the woman's arms and neck. Luckily, there did not seem to be any on the girl.

"If you want to, you're more than welcome to stay here for the night. You just need to tell the person in charge of the shelter so they can make sure they have beds for you," Kate offered the blonde woman.

"Thank you," she said. "I'm just not really sure what to do at the moment."

"There are also other services here that can help you." Kate gave the woman a smile. "Would you like some more information?"

The woman nodded. "My name is Carol, by the way and my daughter's name is Amy."

"Nice to meet you," Kate said as she handed the woman a pamphlet. "Feel free to come here any time."

Carol nodded, her eyes filled with gratitude as she led her daughter to a table.

"Those cases are always the hardest," Sandra said as soon as the two people were out of ear shot. "You want to do something for them, but you know you can't overstep."

"Yeah," Kate murmured, her g aze lingering on the two females. Although it did not occur that often, Kate had seen her fair share of abused women. The kitchen did not allow volunteers to intervene with the personal lives of the customers unless asked. The brunette then shook her head to clear her mind before continuing to serve the rest of the line.

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AN: So there it is. This was written before I posted the story, so I was still trying to gauge where I was going with this, hence the short chapter. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.


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